ABSTRACT

Terrorism in the Twenty-First Century helps readers understand terrorism, responses to it, and current trends that affect the future of this phenomenon. Putting terrorism into historical perspective and analysing it as a form of political violence, this text presents the most essential concepts, the latest data, and numerous case studies to promote effective analysis of terrorist acts. Terrorism in the Twenty-First Century objectively breaks down the who-what- why-how of terrorism, giving readers a way both to understand patterns of behavior and to more critically evaluate forthcoming patterns.

 

New to the Ninth Edition:

  • Uses a key contemporary challenge of terrorism—the emerging radicalization via social media platforms—as a thread to link its chapters, especially in terms of domestic terror threats and the rise of the far right in the US and abroad.
  • Discusses the evolving "fifth wave" of modern terrorism, linking and radicalizing groups and individuals in all parts of the globe, recruiting individuals for terrorist acts in their own states and drawing them into international confrontations. 
  • Compares the profile of domestic extremists over time up to the Capitol rioters of January 2021.
  • Includes new and updated case studies on a wide variety of terror phenomena including the Covid-19 pandemic, Q’Anon, the Boogaloo Movement, the Proud Boys, and the War on Terror in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Syria, among several others.

part I|72 pages

Terrorism in Perspective

chapter Chapter 1|19 pages

An Idea Whose Time Has Come?

chapter Chapter 2|23 pages

Not a Modern Phenomenon

chapter Chapter 3|28 pages

Ideology and Terrorism

Rights from Wrongs?

part II|71 pages

Who Are the Terrorists?

chapter Chapter 4|40 pages

Criminals or Crusaders?

chapter Chapter 5|29 pages

Terrorism by the State

part III|140 pages

How Do They Operate?

chapter Chapter 6|26 pages

Terrorism, Inc.

chapter Chapter 7|45 pages

Terrorist Training

chapter Chapter 8|34 pages

The Media

A Weapon for Both Sides?

chapter Chapter 9|33 pages

Domestic Terrorism in the United States

part IV|135 pages

Responses to Terrorism

chapter Chapter 10|40 pages

International Legal Perspectives on Terrorism

chapter Chapter 11|23 pages

The Use of Force to Combat Terrorism

chapter Chapter 13|34 pages

Security Measures

A Frail Defense

part V|77 pages

Current Trends and Future Prospects

chapter Chapter 14|37 pages

The Continuing Terrorist Threat

Weapons of Mass Destruction

chapter Chapter 15|38 pages

Future Trends